Cebu City wake theft: Man pretends to be grieving kin, steals phone

Police nabbed a 29-year-old man who allegedly stole a minor’s phone inside a funeral home in Cebu City on Thursday evening, June 20. | Screenshot from Alan Domingo’s FB live

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Authorities arrested a man who was caught moments after stealing a cellphone owned by a young member of a grieving family inside a funeral home along N. Bacalso Avenue in Cebu City, on Thursday evening, June 20.

The suspect, a man who goes by the alias “James”, 29, allegedly entered the funeral home pretending to be one of the family members of the bereaved.

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In a live interview with Alan Domingo of Balitang Bisdak and posted on his social media page, the establishment’s security guard at the time of the incident narrated what happened.

The guard, Anselma Daque, said that the suspect entered the room where the wake was being held at around 9:30 in the evening on Thursday.

She said that James chose from the snacks and drinks displayed, sat with the family members and even referred to one of them as “uncle.”

Another family member, who is a minor, claimed that the suspect had been acting suspicious while he was in the room, which prompted them to unplug the phones that they had been charging and hide them.

However, they failed to notice one phone that was left out on display.

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When he had the chance, James got a hold of the cellphone and took off, according to the witness.

Another family member immediately ran after James after the witness informed them of what took place. The relative was able to catch James outside of the funeral home and brought him back.

He also recovered the stolen cellphone owned by another relative, who is also a minor.

Police Captain Jay R Falcon, chief of San Nicolas Police Station, said that police officers from another station who were patrolling in the area responded after the security guard asked for help.

According to Daque, the suspect admitted to his crime after the officers arrived. At around 11:00 p.m., James was turned over to the San Nicolas Police Station, where he was detained.

However, Falcon said that the victim’s family opted not to file a case against the suspect as the cellphone was promptly returned to them.